Thursday, December 1, 2016

Just Out For a Little Cruise, Officer?

I had an interesting experience the other night. After leaving our Radio Play practice at the Grand Opera House Tuesday around 8:15 pm, I was followed closely by an Oshkosh Police Squad car for several miles. I pulled out from the stop sign at Pearl Avenue and Division Street and the officer pulled in behind me. He (or she--I couldn't tell in my rearview mirror at night) followed me as I took a left onto Jackson Street and then over the Oregon Street Bridge.

I started to get a bit suspicious when the squad car followed me as I made a right hand turn onto Sixth Avenue right after the bridge. I wasn't sure if the speed limit there was 25, 30 or 35 so I made sure to keep it at a "safe" 27.

The officer continued to follow right behind me through a couple of stop signs on 6th--and eventually to a right hand turn onto Sawyer Street. That's where another vehicle at the four-way stop got between me and the squad car. After sitting through the light at 9th Ave, I continued north on Sawyer and had to stop to make my left-hand turn onto Southland Avenue. The officer pulled right back up behind me and signaled to make the same turn.

After again having to guess on the speed limit on Southland I signaled for a right-hand turn onto Lark Street--where I live--and so did the officer. "If that guy is going to turn on the lights and stop me in front of my own house so that all of the neighbors can see, I am going to be really PO'ed" I thought. But as I flipped on the signal and turned into my driveway, the officer slowly drove on by--and then turned at the next street.

So I have to wonder, why was I being followed? I guess I could have turned on my police scanner app on my cellphone to see if he was radioing back to dispatch what my possible violation might be (although monitoring a police frequency in a vehicle is against the law). There is no way that could be a routine patrol route. "Yeah, I just finished my drive by at the Town Motel, now I'm going to make sure nothing's going on along one block of Lark Street. I'm going to take the route with the most right-hand turns and fewest stoplights too."

Anyway, I hope the officer enjoyed trailing after Mr Law Abiding Citizen on his way home.